FORT WORTH, Texas -- Catholic Charities Fort Worth are housing some immigrant children separated from their families at the U.S.-Mexico border, Bishop Michael Olson confirmed to WFAA.
The local nonprofit regularly partners with the Government's Office of Refugee Resettlement, so it's not unheard of for them to have immigrant families, or even unaccompanied children, at their Fort Worth facility.
That's what happened a few years ago when thousand of minors arrived from Central America.
Olson said he appreciates that security concerns are significant, but that the stricter enforcement of a zero-tolerance approach that is separating undocumented families isn't the answer.
“This a premeditated decision just to refuse everybody at first face. And so the children have become tools," Olson told WFAA.
The Catholic Diocese of Fort Worth said children tied to the zero-tolerance program only arrived within the past few days, but details like age or gender weren't immediately known.
The agency's small 26-bed facility has a history of assisting migrant children.
Olson, who doesn't shy away from offering thoughts on politics and religion via Twitter, told WFAA that it's imperative to help those who've arrived for refuge.
"The unwarranted separation of parents from their children not only harms those relationships but undermines the right to life, the respect for legitimate authority, and all other basic human rights in society," Olson said in a statement.